Refrigerator assembly



Oct'. 3, 1950 H. M. DUNLAP REFRIGERATOR ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Nov. 15, 1946 4 6 8 W `JI\ .L 9W ....I| H\\I|-l| A l y V .|lW|"ll||1.HU||`lh.||l||I"H T|\, II.. u 8 1, n n |||,|||.|nh"dl||l."n I il i| lL J i @Nw/ l l l l l @van E 1r|| www nnn IIHHHIIIIL bllww :mi 1||||| f|!u\|\\|\|| Il l l ||III..III.L f, f, my

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HUBERT M DUNLHF H. M. D'UNLAP- REFRIGERATOR SSEMBLY Oct. 3, 1950 2 sheets-sheet 2 Filed uw, 1 5, 194e :IIIL

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. HDETEHTMEUNLHP Patented Oct. 3, 1950 REFnIGEaAToR `As sEMLY lslob'crtVMM.,l D'nnlap-,UJacksom Mich., assigner to The Sparks-Withingtpn "Company, Jackson,

Mich., `a,corporation ofOhio Y Application November 15, 1946; Serial No. 710,0112- This invention relates to improvements: inrefrigerator assembliesv and more particularly to the problem of`the working parts within the assembly. For man-y reasons, it has become standardnprac# tice in the refrigerator industryto maken completely sealediassemblyof all of the workingparts of the refrigerator, especially including the ,compressor, evaporator, condenser and the lines associated with these parts. The cabinet is then built around this assembly in such a way that it becomes a major operation to attempt to replace some of the working parts of the refrigera- 1 claim. (c1. sta-,116)

tor when they get out of order. It is also recognized that unskilled mechanics ruin many refrigerators in attempting to repair them after they have gotten out of order. 1

It is an object of this invention to provide a refrigerator cabinet from which the condenser, evaporator, compressor unit may be easily removed by unskilled labor, a new unit installed, and the original unit shipped to the factory for repair.

Another object is to provide a flat plate evaporator for installation in one wall of the refrigerator cabinet in such a manner thaty access may be had to this evaporator for replacement without removing the stored goods from the inside of the refrigerator and without requiring the complete dismantling of the cabinet.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will appear from the following description and drawings, in which Fig. I is a top view of a table top refrigerator indicating the suggested arrangement of the parts embodying my invention,

Fig. II is a perspective view of the refrigerator,

. with the back plate and insulation removed, and

the unit partially removed,

Fig. III is a vertical view of an evaporator plate indicating details of its construction and the lines from the compressor and condenser,

UFig. IV is a broken vertical sectional view on lines IV-IV of Fig. I,

Fig. V is a vertical View of the back of the re-v frigerator, showing a suggested arrangement of the parts,

Fig. VI is a sectional View, similar to Fig. IV but on a larger scale, indicating more of the construction oi the evaporator plate, and y Fig. VII is a broken view in elevation showinga different type of flat plate evaporator which may be employed in such a refrigerator.

In the drawings the cabinet i8 is supported on base I2 and is equipped with any type of hinged closure or top opening lid le, thereby enclosing are both channeled in such a way that inlet tube a suitable refrigeration compartment I6., The-internal walls.v ofv compartment I6 are made of metalyand are described as inner liner-I8; Between inner liner I8 and the outside wall of cabi-,- net -LE-fis placedithe customary'insulationgZlllu Positionedbelow partof compartment ltsamd'besidejv partioficompartment .L8 is compartment l2 2,' .which housesathe reirigerating mechanism, vand is closed? by screen or grille 24. The back wall 26 of cabinet ID is constructed with an aperture '2B into which grille 24 is fitted, as well as aperture 30 which is closed by the removable plate 32, held in position by suitable means, such as screws 34.

Positioned between compartment 22 and insulae tion 28, and internal from back wall 28 is channel or slot 36, the function of which will be more clear 4 later.

The back plate evaporator 38 is shaped to t I one side of inner liner I8 and is held in position against inner liner I8 by means of screws 40; insulation 28 lls the space between evaporator 38 and back wall 26. TEvaporator 38 is connected;

with condenser 42 by line 44, and to compressor 48 by line 48. Lines 44 and 48 are connected to evaporator 38 very close together and lines 44 and 48 run Very close together and parallel from evaporator 38 down into compartment I8, through slot or aperture 36, thereby making it possible, as willbe seen more fully later, to withdraw the condenser compressor evaporator unit from the cabinet l0 without removing lines 44 and 48. Line 5I] connects the reirigerating mechanism by providing the means through which the refrigerant may be pumped into the system. l Y

A very important feature of my invention is the selection of back plate evaporator 38, which is formed to give cooling over a large flat area and is also channeled so that inlet line 44 from condenser 42 may be placed very close to outlet line 48 into compressor 46. It is only by placing these two lines in close relationship where Vthey enterY evaporator v38 that full advantage may be taken of the removable feature through slot or aperture 36. There are any number of evaporatorsv 38 available to do this job, and Various types of evaporators will work. Evaporator 33 as shown in Fig. III or evaporator 38 as shown in Fig. VII

44 may be positioned close to outlet tube 48 and still have the refrigerant reach all corners of the evaporator. l Y

"In order for the unskilled refrigerator mechanic to repair a! refrigerator constucted according to my invention he would first remove screen or grille 2i and back plate 32, thereby exposing 1n;-Y

Sulation 20. Insulation may be in the form of batting or matting or it may be the loose type of insulation; in either case insulation 20 is removed, thereby exposing evaporator 38. Screws 40 which hold evaporator 38 in close contact with inner liner I8 are next removed, along with any stabilizing attachment found necessary to hold the condenser 42 and compressor 46 in compartment I8. At this point it will be'found that there is enough exibility in lines 44 and 48 to allow evaporator 38 to be maneuvered out of cabinet l through aperture 30 in back wall 26, and at the same time to remove condenser 42 and compressor 46- out through aperture 28, having lines 44 and 48 followout through slot 36. The entirefunit may be slid out of the cabinet and into a specially designed shipping crate in which it may be shipped to the central factory for repair. A substitute unit may be installed in cabinet I0 by reversing the removing process thus.

described.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

A refrigerator assembly comprising a cabinet .having outer insulating walls, a refrigeration compartment enclosed by said cabinet, an inner liner defining said compartment, a refrigerating ating unit, a wall structure between said compartments having a slot defined therein and through which said lines extend, and apertures deiined in one of said outer walls into which said slot opens to enable said evaporator, lines, and refrigerating unit to be removed thereto from said cabinet without disconnecting said lines.

HOBERT M. DUNLAP.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,789,916 Thornton Jan. 20, 1931 2,309,533 Philipp Jan. 26, 1943 2,387,465 Peltier Oct. 23, 1945 

